The present invention relates to golf course maintenance equipment, and more particularly to improvements in lawnmowers for trimming the greens on a golf course, and yet more particularly to a scraper apparatus for assuring that the height of cut of the grass on a green is maintained in uniformity.
In the prior art, a variety of different lawnmower structures have been proposed and utilized with some success in the trimming of the greens on a golf course. As is known in the art, a "green" on a golf course is that area surrounding each golf hole or "cup". Typically, greens are of different sizes, shapes, and topographies to provide variety. But all should have a substantially uniform surface having first minimal surface irregularities.
As those skilled in the art are aware, it is upon the golf green where the golfing activity for each hole is terminated by one or more "putts", or "putting strokes", which putting strokes continue alternatingly between players, until each ball is tapped into the hole. Accordingly, the area around the hole known as the "green" must be of a substantially uniform surface in order to permit reliance upon skill by the players, rather than upon happenstance in the putting strokes. Thus, it is of critical importance that the height of the grass on the green be of substantially uniform height. And hence, it becomes significantly important that the lawnmower for trimming the greens of the golf course assure that the grass is trimmed to a uniform height.
In view thereof, most prior art lawnmowers for trimming greens in a golf course have had some mechanism for adjusting the height of the blades, usually comprising blades on a reel-type lawnmower. In order to utilize such depth adjustment mechanisms effectively, it has been necessary to support such prior art lawnmowers for trimming the greens on a golf course typically upon a plurality of rollers. Unfortunately, these rollers, and particularly the rearward most disposed rollers have a tendency to accumulate clipped grass, and other debris thereon, which interferes with and substantially negates the functioning of the depth of cut adjustment. The undesirable result is a green which has differing heights of grass at different points on the green. This situation of a non-uniform, or irregular, green surface detracts from the element of skill in the game of golf, and thus is regarded as substantially undesirable in the golf course maintenance arts.
Accordingly, in view of the defects and deficiencies of prior art golf course maintenance equipment and related techniques, it is a material object of the present invention to provide a green trimming lawnmower structure which will allow for uniform height of the grass on a green.
It is a yet further object of the improved golf course green mower structure of the present invention to provide a mechanism for removing debris from the support rollers for the mower in order to assure substantial uniformity of depth of cut by the lawnmower blades into the grass comprising the golf green.
These and other objects and advantages of the present invention will become apparent to those skilled in the art upon review of the following summary of the invention, brief description of the drawing, detailed description of preferred embodiments, appended claims and accompanying drawings.